Injustice: Supernova
by Komix Lane
Summary: Set in the Injustice timeline, years before the ascension of Superman's Regime, Batman and Nightwing cross paths with a mysterious metahuman named Sam Wilson. After Batman agrees to take Sam on as another apprentice, he and Nightwing soon discover the dark and tragic history behind one of the most powerful telekinetic beings they've ever encountered.
1. Prologue 1: Supernova

Prologue 1: Supernova

_You will never be one of them…_

_Murderer…_

_I can't control it…!_

_Do you really think you can be normal…?_

_I can't control it…_

_I'm sorry…_

_It's all your fault…_

_I'm sorry!_

_IT'S ALL YOUR FAULT!_

Sam awoke with a jolt. Her heart was pounding in her ears and her breath came out in short, ragged puffs of steam. She could feel the sweat on her forehead as the early morning wind froze it to her skin, and shivered and contracted into her thin jacket. She glanced down at the place on the ground where her right palm had been resting; there was a small cluster of cracks, one splitting all the way to the opposite wall of the alleyway. Sam pursed her lips and rubbed her temples.

"What's wrong with me…?" she whispered sadly. She shakily rose to her feet, brushing away the dirt from the alley floor off of her tattered jeans. Then she carefully walked to the opening of the alley and examined her surroundings, pushing her long black hair out of her ice-blue eyes.

At the sight of the horizon, Sam couldn't help but breathe, "Wow." The sun was slowly rising, peaking between skyscrapers. Sam then noticed that a small smile of admiration had grown on her face and she quickly wiped it away. She couldn't remember the last time she smiled; it just felt strange.

Sam checked to make sure the streets were clear, then left the alley and headed towards the city. She looked up one last time at the sunrise and her gaze lingered on the tallest skyscraper in the gleaming city skyline. While the building was simple in its modern appearance, the feature that stood out was the gigantic "W" on its face. Sam then saw that just below the giant white letter was the company name, "WayneTech."


	2. Prologue 2: Nightwing

**Author's Note: Hey, everyone! I felt like the previous version of this chapter was a bit rushed, so I edited it to make it feel more suspenseful and not quite as forced. Enjoy!**

Prologue 2: Nightwing

"So tell me again what's going on?" Nightwing asked. He watched Bruce Wayne type on the computer in the Batcave, a different project on each of the three screens. It was still unnerving to Nightwing to see Bruce Wayne, not Batman, in the Batcave.

"I need to wrap up some work at WayneTech and then I have some business to discuss with the Justice League. I need you to go on patrol in my place, look for anything unusual and take care of it." Bruce said calmly.

"Okay." Nightwing said unenthusiastically. While he knew it was an important part of his job, it wasn't the fun part. More often than not, all Nightwing really dealt with was petty street scum causing trouble. But he knew better than to argue with Bruce, so he got on his motorcycle and drove off into the evening.

A couple hours later, the night didn't unfold exactly how Nightwing had planned. He didn't find any street thugs. In fact, there was almost nothing out of the ordinary. It was quiet…too quiet. Nightwing didn't like it. He hid his motorcycle and climbed to the top of an old apartment complex. When he saw the nighttime skyline, he couldn't help but admire it for a few moments. Though he preferred Blüdhaven, Nightwing had to admit Gotham looked pretty awesome at night.

Suddenly, Nightwing heard footsteps. He crouched instinctively and stepped slowly to the edge. In the empty street just below him, there was a girl walking on the sidewalk wearing tattered and baggy clothes that visibly weren't keeping out the chill. But it wasn't the girl that got his attention; it was the three men following her.

The girl turned into an abandoned alleyway and the three men quickened their pace as soon as she was out of sight, which was never a good sign. Nightwing jumped soundlessly to the roof of the next building. He landed silently on the ground as the men were cornering her against a wall, taunting her.

"Hey, what are you doing out here alone this late?" one of the guys said smoothly. Nightwing hid in the shadows, preparing his plan of attack.

"Yeah, it's cold out here," the second guy chimed in. "We got a place a little ways down. You could spend the night or…" He edged closer to the girl, his body almost pressing against hers.

"Leave me alone." Her voice surprised Nightwing. It wasn't shaky or frightened. Her voice was firm and threatening, and she glared at each of the thugs, daring them to touch her.

"C'mon, don't be like that." The second man tried to touch her face with his large palm.

Nightwing drew escrima sticks and his muscles tensed, prepped to intervene, when the girl grabbed the thug's hand and bent back his fingers. Before he could shout in pain, she kneed him in the groin and punched him in the throat with her right fist. Nightwing's jaw dropped. The other two men gawked at the girl as their friend crumpled to the ground, gagging.

"You _bitch_!" The first thug lunged at the girl, throwing a sloppy roundhouse punch. She grabbed the outside of his wrist with her right hand and without hesitating, broke his elbow with her left palm. Still holding his broken arm, the girl kicked the man in the face, her right heel connecting with his nose. The third guy stared at his buddies in disbelief, then his face twisted into an expression of rage and he pulled out a small handgun and pointed it at the girl.

Nightwing couldn't sit by this time. He rounded the corner, escrima sticks up and ready. But something strange happened, all within a few seconds: the girl cringed and threw her arms up in front of her face. The thug was suddenly thrown into the wall behind him, like he was being pushed by some unseen force, his neck cracking against the brick. The girl lowered her arms and gasped at the man's unmoving body. Nightwing watched dumbfounded as she carefully walked over to the body. She suddenly scrambled away when she saw the gruesome state of his neck. Then she crumpled to her knees and buried her face in her palms, silently weeping.

Nightwing lowered his sticks and slowly approached the girl. Her reaction was…interesting. That man was ready to do unspeakable things to her, even kill her and yet, she was mourning for him. That force was also interesting. What was it? Nightwing reached out his hand to her and uttered a quiet "Hey..."

The girl glanced up and suddenly recoiled from him. "Go away," she said quickly.

Nightwing paused before speaking. "I'm not going to hurt you. I want to help you."

"I don't need your help. I don't _want_ your help." Her voice wasn't as strong as before. It almost sounded regretful.

"Listen," Nightwing said calmly, "you really shouldn't be out in these parts this late. Can you tell me where you live? I can escort you there."

There was a pause before the girl responded, "_This_ is where I live, if you even want to call it that."

Nightwing was stunned. She couldn't be homeless, she was too young. "Do you have parents? Someone's gotta be looking for you." She didn't answer.

"Well, I know someone who can help people with your skills," Nightwing reasoned gently.

"Thanks, but no thanks," she said quietly, staring at the ground almost shamefully.

"Look, I know that you'd be taking a risk by trusting me, but believe me, this guy you can trust."

"Please just…leave me alone…"

"I can't just leave you here. I want to help—"

"JUST LEAVE ME ALONE!" Nightwing was suddenly thrown away from the girl and into the wall by some unseen force. He groaned in pain and looked at the girl, her eyes wide in terror. She scrambled to her feet and began to sprint, tears streaming down her cheeks.

At this point, Nightwing didn't care that she wanted to be alone. He couldn't let her continue living in this fear. He quickly, albeit painfully, got to his feet and started after her.

"Wait!" he called after her.

She was gone. He found his motorcycle and searched the area, but it was as if she was never even there. Distraught and confused, he turned and drove for the Batcave. Bruce needed to know about this.


End file.
